Figure toy



06%,? 9 A. M. SMOLENS FIGURE TOY Filed Nov. 27, 1922 Patented Get. '7, 1924.

ABRAHAM M. SI\ IOLE1\TS, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

FIGURE TOY.

Application filed November-27, 1922'. Serial No. 603,406.

To all whom it may con-0cm:

Be it known that I, ABRAHAM M. SMoLnNs, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at New York city, Bronx County, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Figure Toys, of which the following is a specification;

This invention relates to mechanical toys and has for its object the provision of a novel toy of this class appropriatefor babies and small children of either seX.

Another object is to produce a toy mechaing them.

As a fourth object this mechanical tov like other mechanical toys is intended to be instructive inasmuch as it stimulates the natural inquisitiveness of children concerning cause and effect of actions, they perceive.

A fifth object is to devise a mechanism which accomplishes the purposes indicated above by the simplest possible means.

A final object is to make the operating parts of said mechanism of such construc tion that not only jumping figuresccan be agitated by it, but any other toy which requires reciprocating rotary movement or may utilize such movement as a substitute for continuous rotation in one direction, as for instance a fan or toywindmill or twirling star and so forth.

These and similar objects are accomplished by means of such structure and novel arrangement of parts as are hereinafter described and shown in the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this disclosure, and which are to be considered as illustrative and descriptive only and not as restrictive or limitative, and in which:

Figure 1 shows an assembly of all the parts of the invention.

Figure 2 is a modification of the operating mechanism, devised on and following the same mechanical principles, the driven puppet being omitted in the illustration.

Figure 3 is a sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. 2. I

Figure t is a top view of the mechanism shown in Fig. 2. i

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views.

Referring to the drawings in detail, the numeral 10 will be seen to designate the stationary or body part of a flapping figure which may show any desired design and represent any appropriate animated object,

for instance a clown.

The legs 11, and the arm 12, linked" to the body by means of rivets 13 and 14 respectively, complete the puppet.

The whole figure may be either made of fiat paste board, on which thedesign is painted on one or both sides, or be a corporeal manikin having depth width and height. Y

This figure is mounted in any suitable manner, as indicated by the rivet 15,0n a supporting rod 16, the lower end of which is rotatably socketed at 17 in a handle 18.

as well as" On the rod 16 is fixedly secured a pinion 20, and the pinion being also supported underneath its hub 21 in an axial direction on the handle 18, the latter is appropriately capped at this point with a perforated conical metal bearing 22' to diminish friction, when the pinion isrotated'. To give the rod 16 additional guidance a side bracket 24, V

partly shown dotted, is attached to the flattened upper side of the handle 18, said bracket consisting'of a flat band where top end 25 is bent over at right angles and perforated to embrace the rod 16 above thefixed pinion 20.

The upper part of the handle 18, is flat tened on both sides, as indicated by the plane surface 26, located diametrically opposite the flat band 24, so as to fit, together with the latter into the parallel legs of a U-shaped band clip 27 which is rigidly fast ened to both of them by means of the rivetclearly indicates, and bent at the fulcrum at an obtuse angle, bell-crank fashion. The upwardly directed arm 30 in a normal position runs approximately parallel to the handle, while the downwardly inclined arm 30, diverging from the handle, is fitted at the end with another handle 31.

nround the pin, inside the channel-shaped hollow of the lever 30 is wound a loop spring 32, whose straight ends 32 and 32 rest in the hollow of the lever and a slot 33, provided for his purpose in the handle 18, respectively.

Thus the two handles, the lever 30 and the spring form a pair of resilient tongs.

To the upper extremity of the lever arm fastened by a rivet or otherwise a raclr 3% which the pinion permanently engages. This rack may be formed in various suitable ways, the main condition being that it forms a circular segment with the pivotal point 28 as a center. As a preferred form it is proposed to be made out of a flat strip of metal, lyin in the swinging plane, except for the curled-over end 35, by which it is fastened to the lever, and perforated by a series of openings or oblong slots 36 matching with the teeth of the pinion. I

The mode of operation is obvious from this foregoing description. alternately compressing and releasing the handles of the tongs the segment imparts a reciproeating rotary motion to the pinion. This being rigidly attached to the rod 16, revolves the latter together with the figure, fixed to its top, and the centrifugal force, thus imparted to the jointed members of said figure, spreads them apart. while the interruption, caused by the reversal of the rotary motion, causes said members to temporarily drop again.

The modification of the mechanical. or operating parts, shown in. Figs. 2 to l differ from the original and preferred arrangement in that the lever 30, together with the rack and the handle 31, is doubled and assembled in cooperating, opposedly arranged pairs, as indicated by the corresponding numerals, with the letters It and L attached as suffixes. The spring 32 in this case is wound around the common pin 29 and rests with its free arms 32 and 32" in the hollow channels of both levers. The fulcrum portions of the levers, and 30 must straddle or overlap each other, as indicated in Figs. 2 and 3.

This arrangement dispenses with the former stationary handle 18, the U-clip 27 and the sine bracket 24, while the rod 16, which carries the pinion 20, rests in a special eye-socket 37, provided and supported by the eye-shaped lower end on the pin 29.

The pinion in this case engages simultaneously and at diametrically opposite points the two racks 34c and 34?.

The operation of the assembled toy is identical with the one described above.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as novel and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

l. A mechanical toy, comprising a puppet with jointed limbs, a shaft on which the puppet is mounted, a pinion, fixedly supported on the shaft, a pair of resiliently connected tongs, cooperating with and rotatably supporting said shaft and a rack rigidly attached to one of the tong tops and adapted to operatively engage said pinion.

2. A mechanical toy, comprising a puppet with jointed limbs, a shaft on which the puppet is mounted, a. pinion, fixedly supported on the shaft, a. pair of resiliently connected tongs, cooperating with and rotatably supper ing said shaft and two racks, each rigidly attached to one of the tong tops and engaging the pinion on diametrically opposite sides for imparting reciprocating rotary motion to said pinion.

ABRAHAM M. SMOLENS. 

